Adrian Clarke says Chelsea shape may vary under new head coach but hard work is guaranteed

With the 2016/17 Premier League less than a week away, Adrian Clarke assesses the five managers who are making their debuts in the competition, looking at their philosophy and what’s on their “To Do list”.

Toying with the idea of deploying Chelsea in a bold 4-2-4 formation has caused quite a stir this summer, but it’s unlikely Conte, the new head coach, will settle on that, or any fixed system just yet.

When it comes to shape, Conte is an experimental coach. With Bari, Siena, Atalanta, Juventus and Italy, he has used 3-5-2, 3-3-4, 3-4-2-1, 4-1-4-1, 4-4-2 and 4-3-3 at various intervals, in addition to the 4-2-4 that’s featured regularly in Chelsea’s pre-season friendlies.

If Conte does unleash a “front four”, he would only do so from a solid base.

That would mean Chelsea’s full-backs sitting back a touch more than usual, and the defensive pairing of N’Golo Kante and Nemanja Matic scurrying around the midfield breaking up play. Without the ball, it would also spring back into a 4-5-1 of sorts.